Voting Question: can you help me edit my research paper on marijuana legalization?

There are three uses for marijuana: spiritual, medicinal, and recreational. There are two ongoing debates for the legalization of marijuana. Many may be opposed to legalization because of the dangers of second-hand smoke and marijuana is commonly perceived as a gateway drug. Advocates for legalization argue that it will increase our economy and reduce drug related gang violence. The legalization of marijuana will benefit many people in our country. This is important for medical relief, a better economy, and a safety from gang violence.
Marijuana is the dried leaves of the female flowers from the hemp plant used in cigarette form as a narcotic or hallucinogen. A hallucinogen is the perception of something or someone that is not actually there. Marijuana may be used for different reasons: recreational, spiritual, or experimental. Marijuana is currently illegal in the United States and most Americans discourage its use. The use of narcotics is breaking a more, a sociologist’s term for breaking a law. (Woolen) As John Benson Jr. MD states “Most of the identified health risks of marijuana use are related to smoke, not to the cannabinoids that produce the benefits.” Most of the health risks of using marijuana occur because of the act of smoking it and not of the effects the drug produces.
To begin with, marijuana was legal in the United States before 1937. In the 17th century the government encouraged the use of marijuana. Many of the US presidents grew and farmed hemp. For example President George Washington states, “Make the most you can of the Indian hemp seed. Sow it everywhere.” Washington was one of many U.S. presidents who encouraged the farming of marijuana. The stalk of the plant also known as hemp created a great production of rope, sails, and clothing. Hemp use declined in the late eighteenth century. In the late nineteenth century, marijuana became a common ingredient in medicine and was openly sold in pharmacies. In 1920 a wave of immigrants from Mexico came to the U.S. and introduced Americans to the drug’s recreational use. Soon after Americans started using the drug for recreation, the U.S. government prohibited marijuana. This was called the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937.
During the 1960’s marijuana was used heavily. The drug was used by a sub culture called “hippies”. They claimed that marijuana freed their mind and helped them have a spiritual connection. Some say marijuana became a gateway drug for the hippies. Soon after the use of marijuana grew, many hippies began using harder more explicit drugs such as lysergic acid diethylamide or LSD, many people experienced bad trips. The term “bad trip” is a slang word used to describe a psychedelic crisis; many people who experienced bad trips had to be hospitalized. Even though these drugs were illegal many people in the 1960’s continued to use them.
The past few years have been a turning point in the history of marijuana. Governments in California and Nevada have legalized small amounts of marijuana. As a result, gang violence has reduced in areas that support legalization. On the other hand, marijuana use has gone up by 21% according to the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse. As time goes on in this debate the general population is becoming increasingly open to the idea of legalization.
It has been argued by the population opposed to legalization that marijuana is used as a gateway drug. This means that it leads to the use of harder, more illicit narcotics. Advocates for this theory believe that marijuana users often move on to cocaine, heroin, or lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). Incidentally the gateway theory is almost entirely false. Marijuana does not connect with the dopamine system and the idea of seeking a bigger high only connects with dopamine addiction. This theory also ignores the social motivation. Under the drugs current legal status marijuana users have a higher chance of interacting with more hardcore drug users. Thus the gateway is opened due to social influence. (S.T. Burnett)
However, secondhand hand smoke is a danger to bystanders. According to the Los Angeles School of Medicine, smoking marijuana will associate with a threefold increase in tar inhaled as compared to smoking cigarettes. If the legal status of the drug is adjusted the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) can implement laws regarding where marijuana can and cannot be used. If regulated smoking sections are created we can promote public health as well as benefit from the many advantages marijuana can have on society.
Moreover, legalization will reduce gang violence. Smuggling marijuana into the U.S. will become obsolete if this drug is legalized. The argument goes to say that police can resolve disputes between past drug dealers and continuing battles. Legalizing marijuana will lower prices on marijuana and open competition thus eliminating all or some of the drug cartels business. The crime rate will fall dramatically if